Delta Light enlightens the Italian pavilion at the Biennale Architettura

From 22 May until 21 November, you can experience Delta Light at the Biennale Architecture, the high mass of contemporary architecture in Venice. We are proud and happy to be selected as the exclusive lighting sponsor of the Italian pavilion. With the theme 'Resilient Communities', the Italian pavilion fully draws the card of sustainability. This philosophy concerns the entire design concept, up to the lighting.

Resilient Communities

The Italian pavilion is set in a large space within Arsenale, the central venue of the Biennale. Commissioned by the Italian Ministry of Culture and curated by architect and professor Alessandro Melis, the exhibition 'Resilient Communities’ addresses pressing contemporary issues. It explores the role of architecture in sustainable development, as an answer to the climate crisis.

The effects of climate change, such as on emigration and health, are central to the exhibition. City planning has an important influence on CO2 emissions and thus on the frequency and strength of extreme weather phenomena. The exhibition explores the crucial role of the architect in that process.

Harmonious, sustainable development is inextricably linked to solving the environmental crisis, which particularly affects the most vulnerable communities. The exhibition explores the possibilities of promoting the transformation of those communities and of determining the architectural scenarios for a sustainable future.

A circular design concept

The design of the pavilion is a collaboration of the architectural practices Heliopolis 21, founded by curator Alessandro Melis and the Florence-based ARX Studio. The pavilion not only presents an exhibition about sustainability, the interior design also embodies this concept. The objective for the design was a result with minimal environmental impact.

To achieve this goal, components were repurposed and reused, such as elements from the most recent exhibition in the Italian pavilion, during the 2019 Art Biennale. This philosophy was continued throughout the entire design concept, up to the lighting. The selected LED luminaires from Delta Light are not only energy-efficient, they are also pre-used. This further reduces the ecological footprint of the pavilion.

Web of lighting

The lighting of the Italian pavilion draws its inspiration from the story of curator Alessandro Melis. The lighting plan, as created by Heliopolis 21 and ARX Studio, symbolises a web of relationships, resources, opportunities and perspectives. The concept is translated into an arrangement of architectural lighting by Delta Light, including constellations of Superloop light circles, profiles with Spy spotlights and tubular luminaires from the XY180 collection, a design collaboration with OMA.

Delta Light's activities are closely linked to values such as sustainability, individual health and environmental protection, and therefore these issues are treated as corporate values and priorities. The company has already been rewarded with sustainability awards such as Lighting For Good Awards in both 2019 and 2020 and it has received the silver medal from the sustainability monitor Ecovadis.

Our CEO Jan Ameloot confirms: "Sustainable innovation is an essential part of Delta Light's business: we continue to strive to make our internal processes and products more efficient, sustainable and environmentally friendly. The lighting design of the Italian pavilion tells that story."

As in The Lighting Bible 14, our manifesto of light, Delta Light takes you a journey of Imagination and Creation in the Italian Pavilion.

Photography by Luca Cioci